As to which gender, both are about equally appealing when they are spayed/neutered. When a male is little and you lift him up with a hand under the belly his plumbing is right there in the middle so you will probably be washing your hands whereas with a girl you may or may not. Before about 2000 I would have had a hard time commenting on which gender is best. We only had experience with studs and one neutered little male poodle.

Then we began to save males for the future. I just love our boys. They are as loving and affectionate as any of our girls. I think it's just more of a personal preference. If you purchase a male there is research suggesting that the optimal time for neutering is 4-6 months. At about 7 months, puberty occurs. Before the 4 months, there may be some disadvantages to early neutering. With spaying females there may be an advantage spaying before the first heat (6-9 months) in terms of reduced breast cancer risk in later life.​